Jail locking mechanism

ABSTRACT

In a jail cell locking system, a cell door may be locked in its open position and in its closed position by latch members which are secured by locking members, the latch members being pivoted about vertical axes and the locking members being pivoted about longitudinal, horizontal axes. The locking members are released from the locking position by means of a rotary solenoid, the operation of which is conditioned by initiation of a door opening or a door closing operation. A gang bar is provided for deadlocking the locking members of a series of doors, and for releasing each of the doors in the case of an emergency.

llnited States Patent 1191 Markham Aug. 20, 1974 [54] JAIL LOCKING MECHANISM 3,083,560 4/1963 Scott 292/216 x I 3,426,478 2/1969 Sturges et al. 1 Invenwr- Markham, Rexdale 3,583,740 8/1968 Armstrong 292/210 x Ontario, Canada I [73] Assignee: Chubb Industries Limited, Primary Examiner 1 Y Brampton Ontari Canada Attorney, Agent, or FirrnRld0ut & Maybee [22] F1led: Oct. 3, 1973 a [57] ABSTRACT PP N05 4031066 In a jail cell locking system, a cell door may be locked in its open position and in its closed position by latch 52 us. 01 49/18, 49/20, 292/210, members which are Seeured by locking-members, the 292/216 latch members being pivoted about vertical axes and 51 1111. C1 EOSb 47/06 the locking members being pivoted about longitudinal. 58 Field 61 Search 4,9/15-20, 450; horizontal eXeS- The locking members are released 292/210 216, 218 from the locking position by means of a rotary solenoid, the operation of which is conditioned by initia- [56] References Cited tion of a door opening or a door closing operation. A UNITED STATES PATENTS gang bar is provided for deadlocking the locking mem-, bers of a series of doors, and for releasing each of the 33??? 313%; Xiiiffifffffffl::iiii"""fijiiiffi fi11% of emergency- 2,792.9l7 5/1957 Smith et al 49/18 X 9 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures J AIL LOCKING'MECHANIS M This invention relates to jail lockingmechanisms. Although the locking mechanism described herein is primarily intended for use in connection with jails, it is to be understood that the locking mechanism may be used in connection with other institutions where it is necessary to make provision for securely retaining inmates, and where it is necessary to make provision for various operations of locking-and unlocking the cell doors of the various cells or rooms.

The invention is particularly concerned with a lock ing mechanism of the type having a sliding door which is movable longitudinally along a horizontal path of travel between door open and door closed terminal positions and means for securing the door in each of its terminal positions.

According to the invention there is provided, in a jail locking mechanism a stationary frame structure, a longitudinally movable jail door, means to support the door during the longitudinal movement along a horizontal path of travel between open and closed terminal positions, first and second longitudinally spaced locking abutments on the door, latch means mounted on the frame structure, said latch means having respective latched and unlatched positions and being engageable in the latched position with the first and second locking abutments at the respective terminal positions of the door, said latch means being displaceable from the latched position by engagement with the respective locking abutment upon movement of the door from each terminal position, locking means having respective locking and unlocking positions, said locking means being biassed towards the locking position and being engageable in the locking position with said latch means so as to lock the latch means in the latched position, and means for releasing said locking means from the locking position to permit displacement of said latch means from the latched position upon movement of the door from each terminal position. The latch means when displaced from the latched position will hold the locking means in the unlocked position during travel of the door, between the terminal positions.

In. the case of a jail structure having a row of cells each provided with a longitudinally movable door, the door usually being moved by remotely operated electric drive means, it is necessary to provide means to open the doors of the row simultaneously in an emergency, when the drive means may not be operable, and additionally to provide means for deadlocking each of the locking devices of the individual doors. According to the invention, these needs are met quite simply by providing a longitudinally extending control bar which is movable independently of the electric drive means, the control bar providing a plurality of cam portions which are engageable with the respective locking means when the control bar is moved in one longitudinal direction, so as to displace the locking means against their bias from the respective locking positions, and a plurality of blocking elements engageable respectively with the locking means when the control bar is moved in the other longitudinal direction whereby to prevent release of the locking means from the locking positions.

One jail locking system in accordance'with the invendoor and part of the locking mechanism therefor:

tion will now be described, by way of .example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

HO. 2 is a vertical sectional view showing details of the locking mechanism in the secured position:

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view showing details of the locking mechanism in the release position;

FIG. 4 is a section on line 44 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a frontal view of part of a row of cells having a common control bar or ganging bar; FIG. 6 is a partsectional elevation of the drive mechanism for an individual cell door;

FIG. 8 is a sectional plan view of the drive mechanism shown in FIG. 6; and

HG. 9 shows diagrammatically, in the three views A,B and C, a sequence of latching operations during opening of the door.

The embodiment of the invention drawings is applied to a jail cell structure providing a row of cells 10, each cell having an independently operable longitudinally movable door 11. The cell fronts are rigidly connected to a stationary frame structure, the frame structure comprising an upper elongated casing 12 extending along the row of cells, and a series of vertical hollow columns 15 extending between the cell door openings. A flanged plate 18 extends along the bottomedge of each door 11, the plate having a downwardly depending flange 13 which projects through the slot 17. The upper casing 12 is closed at its bottom by a plate 19 having a longitudinally extending slot 20; a hanger member 21 is secured to the top edge of each door extends through the slot 20 as is secured to door support means within the casing 12, as hereinafter described. A baffle plate 22 is secured to the lower face of the plate 19 and extends beyond the slot 20, the hanger member 21 extending around the baffle plate and through the slot, as shown in FIG. 2, so as to make it difficult for a cell occupant to gain access to the mechanism within the upper casing.

Each cell door is independently operable by its own electric drive means. The drive means of each cell comprises an electric motor 23 mounted within the upper casing 12 and coupled by a chain and sprocket drive 24 V to a pinion 25 which engages a longitudinally movable rack 26, the rack 26 extending along an elongated flanged support member 27, to which the hanger member 21 is secured. The support member 27 rides on rollers 28 which are journalled to support brackets 29 within the casing 12. Thus each cell door is supported so as to travel along a horizontal path between terminal positions corresponding to a door open position andv a door closed position respectively. The motors 23 are operated from a remote control console, not shown.

The flanged plate 18 has cut-outs adjacent its front and rear ends, which cut-outs define a pair of longitudinally spaced abutments 30,31 which engage a latch member 32 in the respective terminal positions of the door. The latch member 32 takes the form of an L- shaped lever which is pivoted to the frame structure for pivotal movement about a vertical axis. A second L- shaped lever 35 is pivotally mounted in the upper casing 12 and adapted to engage corresponding door abutments at the top edge of the door. The lever 35 has a first arm 35a which is positioned to engage the door abutment 36 and a second arm which provides an abutment-engaging projection 35b and an open ended slot illustrated in the 35c which is engageable with a resetting member 33 mounted on one end of the door by a bracket 34. In FIG. 1, the lever 35 is shown in the latched position and engaging a door abutment 36 with the door in the closed position. FIG. 8 shows the resetting member 33 which is engageable with this lever.

The latch 32,35 mounted so as to swing freely about a common pivotal axis, and so may be displaced from their latched positions by engagement with the respective door abutments when the door is moved longitudinally from a terminal position. In order to secure the latch members in the latched position, upper and lower locking members 38,39 are provided. Each of the locking members 38,39 takes the form of a lever which is pivoted for rotation about a horizontal, longitudinal axis, and having a latchengaging enlargement at one end which is spring biassed into engagement with the respective latch member so as to prevent pivotal movement of the latter. The locking members are interconnected by a vertical rod 40 extending interiorly along the respective vertical column 15.

The locking members 38,39 are released from the locking position by electromagnetic means. A rotary solenoid 41, mounted in the upper casing 12, is positioned adjacent to the upper locking member 38. The rotary solenoid has a radial arm 42 which engages the locking member 38 so as to raise the latter from the locked position, and hence also the locking member 39 from its locking position, when the solenoid is energized. When the solenoid is de-energized, the locking members are spring biassed towards their locked positions and will move down towards their locked condition if the door is in one of its terminal positions; if the door is in an intermediate position, however, the locking members 38 and 39 are prevented from returning to the locked position since the latching members 32 and 35 are rotated beneath them.

In order to open an individual cell door, a switch will be closed at a remote console and this will energize the rotary solenoid 41. The effect of energizing the solenoid 41 is to raise the arm 42 and so to raise the locking members 38,39 from the locking positions, the latch members 32,35 then being free to rotate. When the locking members 38, 39 are in the raised position a microswitch is tripped and power is supplied to the motor 23 which commences to move the door from the closed terminal position and latching members 32,35 are rotated clear by door abutment members 30,36. At a short distance from the closed terminal position, the door engages a microswitch which de-energizes the rotary solenoid 41; the locking members are then spring biassed towards the down locking position but are held in the raised position by the latching members 32,35 which have been rotated beneath them. As the door reaches the fully open position, the resetting member 33 engages the open ended slot 320 of the latch member 35, so that both the latch members 32,35 are rotated to the latched position in latching engagement with the door abutments and locking members 38,39 snap down into the locked position and prevent rotation of the latching members 32,35. At this time, the motor 23 is de-energized, by a microswitch. In closing the door this sequence is reversed. Provision is made for stopping and reversing the door from any position between its open and closed terminal positions.

The system also includes means for deadlocking the locking members 38,39 of the various cell doors. Such means include a gang bar, a control bar 44, which extends longitudinally inside the upper casing 12, and carries a plurality of hook-shaped abutments 45. When the control bar is moved into the deadlock position, the abutments 45 engage the locking members 38 so as to prevent release of the latter from the locking position. The control bar 44 is also formed with a plurality of cam portions 46 which, when the control bar is moved longitudinally into a release position, engage the locking members 38 so as to rotate the latter from the locking position, and hence also to rotate the locking members 39 from the locking position. Thus, by moving the control bar to the release" position, one releases all the cell doors and enables them to be opened.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a jail locking mechanism:

a stationary frame structure,

a longitudinally movable jail door,

means to support the door during the longitudinal movement along a horizontal path of travel between open and closed terminal positions,

first and second longitudinally spaced locking abutments on the door,

latch means mounted on the frame structure,

said latch means having respective latched and unlatched positions and being engageable in the latched position with the first and second locking abutments at the respective terminal positions of the door,

said latch means being displaceable from the latched position by engagement with the respective locking abutment upon movement of the door from each terminal position, locking means having respective locking and unlocking positions, said locking means being biassed towards the locking position and being engageable in the locking position with said latch means so as to lock the latch means in the latched position,

said latch means, when displaced from the latched position, being adapted to hold the locking means in the unlocking position,

and means for releasing said locking means from the locking position to permit displacement of said latch means from the latched position upon movement of the door from each terminal position.

2. The combination claimed in claim 1, wherein said latch means comprises a first lever pivoted for rotation about a vertical axis, said lever having an arm positioned to engage a respective locking abutment in the latched position of said latch means, and said locking means comprises a second lever pivoted for rotation about a horizontal axis, the second lever being engageable with the first lever to prevent displacement of the latter from the latched position.

3. The combination claimed in claim 2, including resetting means mounted on the door, the resetting means being engageable with the first lever upon movement of the door towards a terminal position to return the first lever to the latched position as said terminal position is reached.

4. The combination claimed in claim 3, wherein the first lever is L-shaped and has a second arm formed with an open ended slot engageable with the resetting means, the open end of the slot being longitudinally aligned with the resetting means when the lever is in the unlatched position.

5. The combination claimed in claim 1, wherein said latch means comprises a pair of abutment engaging levers pivotally mounted adjacent the top and bottom edges of the door for rotation about a common vertical axis, and said locking means comprises a 'pair of mechanically interlocked levers pivoted for rotation about horizontal longitudinal axes and engageable respectively with the levers of the first'pair to prevent displacement of the latter from the latched position.

6. In a jail locking mechanism;

a stationary frame structure,

a longitudinally movable jail door,

means to support the door during the longitudinal movement of the door along a horizontal path of travel between open and closed terminal positions,

electric drive means for moving the door along said path of travel,

first and second longitudinally spaced abutments on the door,

latch means pivotally mounted on the frame 'structure,

said latch means having respective latched and unlatched positions and-being engageable in the latch position with the first 'and second locking abutments at the respective terminal positions of the door,

said latch means being pivotally displaceable from the latched position by engagement with the respective locking abutment upon movement of the door from each terminal position,

locking means mounted on the frame structure and having respective locking and unlocking positions, said locking means being biassed towards the locking position and being engageable in the locking position with said latch means so as to lock the latch means in the latched position,

said latch means, when displaced from the latched position, being adapted to hold the locking means in the unlocking position,

and electromagnetic means operable in accordance with actuation of said drive means to release said locking means from the locking position whereby to permit displacement of the latch means from the latched position.

7. The combination claimed in claim 6, wherein said latch means comprises a pair of abutment engaging levers pivotally mounted adjacent the top and bottom edges of the door for rotation about a common vertical axis, and said locking means comprises a pair of mechanically interlocked levers pivoted for rotation about horizontal longitudinal axes and engageable respectively with the levers of the first pair to prevent displacement of the latter from the latched position.

8. The combination claimed in claim 7, wherein the electromagnetic means comprises a rotary solenoid having a rotary arm engaging the upper one of said mechanically interlocked levers and operable to raise the levers from the locking position.

9. In a jail structure providing a row of cells each having an independently operable jail door locking mechanism as claimed in claim 6, the improvement comprising a longitudinally extending control bar mounted on the stationary frame structure, said control bar being movable longitudinally independently of the electric drive means, the control bar providing a plurality of cam portions engageable respectively with said locking means when the control bar is moved in one longitudinal direction whereby to displace thelocking means against their bias from the respective locking positions, and a plurality of blocking elements engageable respectively with said locking means when the control bar is moved in the other longitudinal direction whereby to prevent release of the locking means from the respective locking positions. 

1. In a jail locking mechanism: a stationary frame structure, a longitudinally movable jail door, means to support the door during the longitudinal movement along a horizontal path of travel between open and closed terminal positions, first and second longitudinally spaced locking abutments on the door, latch means mounted on the frame structure, said latch means having respective latched and unlatched positions and being engageable in the latched position with the first and second locking abutments at the respective terminal positions of the door, said latch means being displaceable from the latched position by engagement with the respective locking abutment upon movement of the door from each terminal position, locking means having respective locking and unlocking positions, said locking means being biassed towards the locking position and being engageable in the locking position with said latch means so as to lock the latch means in the latched position, said latch means, when displaced from the latched position, being adapted to hold the locking means in the unlocking position, and means for releasing said locking means from the locking position to permit displacement of said latch means from the latched position upon movement of the door from each terminal position.
 2. The combination claimed in claim 1, wherein said latch means comprises a first lever pivoted for rotation about a vertical axis, said lever having an arm positioned to engage a respective locking abutment in the latched position of said latch means, and said locking means comprises a second lever pivoted for rotation about a horizontal axis, the second lever being engageable with the first lever to prevent displacement of the latter from the latched position.
 3. The combination claimed in claim 2, including resetting means mounted on the door, the resetting means being engageable with the first lever upon movement of the door towards a terminal position to return the first lever to the latched position as said terminal position is reached.
 4. The combination claimed in claim 3, wherein the first lever is L-shaped and has a second arm formed with an open ended slot engageable with the resetting means, the open end of the slot being longitudinally aligned with the resetting means when the lever is in the unlatched position.
 5. The combination claimed in claim 1, wherein said latch means comprises a pair of abutment engaging levers pivotally mounted adjacent the top and bottom edges of the door for rotation about a common vertical axis, and said locking means comprises a pair of mechanically interlocked levers pivoted for rotation about horizontal longitudinal axes and engageable respectively with the levers of the first pair to prevent displacement of the latter from the latched position.
 6. In a jail locking mechanism: a stationary frame structure, a longitudinally movable jail door, means to support the door during the longitudinal movement of the door along a horizontal path of travel between open and closed terminal positions, electric drive means for moving the door along said path of travel, first and second longitudinally spaced abutments on the door, latch means pivotally mounted on the frame structure, said latch means having respective latched and unlatched positions and being engageable in the latch position with the first and second locking abutments at the respective terminal positions of the door, said latch means being pivotally displaceable from the latched position by engaGement with the respective locking abutment upon movement of the door from each terminal position, locking means mounted on the frame structure and having respective locking and unlocking positions, said locking means being biassed towards the locking position and being engageable in the locking position with said latch means so as to lock the latch means in the latched position, said latch means, when displaced from the latched position, being adapted to hold the locking means in the unlocking position, and electromagnetic means operable in accordance with actuation of said drive means to release said locking means from the locking position whereby to permit displacement of the latch means from the latched position.
 7. The combination claimed in claim 6, wherein said latch means comprises a pair of abutment engaging levers pivotally mounted adjacent the top and bottom edges of the door for rotation about a common vertical axis, and said locking means comprises a pair of mechanically interlocked levers pivoted for rotation about horizontal longitudinal axes and engageable respectively with the levers of the first pair to prevent displacement of the latter from the latched position.
 8. The combination claimed in claim 7, wherein the electromagnetic means comprises a rotary solenoid having a rotary arm engaging the upper one of said mechanically interlocked levers and operable to raise the levers from the locking position.
 9. In a jail structure providing a row of cells each having an independently operable jail door locking mechanism as claimed in claim 6, the improvement comprising a longitudinally extending control bar mounted on the stationary frame structure, said control bar being movable longitudinally independently of the electric drive means, the control bar providing a plurality of cam portions engageable respectively with said locking means when the control bar is moved in one longitudinal direction whereby to displace the locking means against their bias from the respective locking positions, and a plurality of blocking elements engageable respectively with said locking means when the control bar is moved in the other longitudinal direction whereby to prevent release of the locking means from the respective locking positions. 